Friday, December 27, 2013

Bryan Suits makes his debut on KABC, what will come next?

Former KFI (640 AM) talk host Bryan Suits made his KABC (790 AM)
debut on Dec. 16, replacing local host John Phillips and the syndicated
Geraldo Rivera with his 9 a.m. to noon weekday shift.
His first
week was perhaps a little tentative, not quite up to the level I am used
to with Suits. But I believe that is due to getting his feet wet at
KABC and trying out an entirely different shift than what he had at KFI,
which was most recently weekends and previously included evenings. But
the topics were local, Suits is a pro, and I believe his hiring was a
great decision on the part of KABC management.

In fact, just having Rivera gone makes mornings that much better.
I expect Suits to work out quite well. But the move begs the question:
what of John Phillips?

Phillips is one of the best hosts in Los
Angeles when it comes to rationally discussing conservative-leaning
politics. His KABC show was a nice alternative to KFI’s syndicated “Rush
Limbaugh Show” when they both aired in the same time slot. It was the
cutting of Phillips’ show to one hour and the addition of Rivera to the
lineup that destroyed any chance KABC had of competing with KFI.

Yes, Suits is a great addition, but if it means losing Phillips,
the net effect on KABC will be negligible. That is unless Phillips is
given, for example, the noon to 3 p.m. shift. In fact, if KABC had a
weekday lineup of Doug McIntyre (with more serious news coverage),
Suits, Phillips and Larry Elder, that would be a fairly solid way to
start the new year. The station still would be stuck with Mark Levin —
his contract still has time to run — but perhaps someone like former KFI
host Joe Crummey could be brought back to town to take over at 6 p.m.

Levin could then be switched to a slot after midnight when his
low ratings won’t count against the station in overall calculations;
Nielsen does not measure listening between midnight and 6 a.m.
Perhaps
KTLK (1150 AM) host Stephanie Miller could be tried out in the evening?
With KTLK’s upcoming change to conservative talk, she’s certainly
available. If I was a programmer, I’d consider trying to convince Tom
Leykis to come back to the traditional airwaves; his talents would add
much to KABC. Or how about KFWB (980 AM) newsman Phil Hulett, whose
podcast “Phil Hulett and Friends” is ready-made for a station that wants to compete?

KFI is formidable competition, and it will take a
steady programming hand and smart promotion, along with some engineering
improvements, to truly make a dent in its armor. Does KABC management
have the guts to do so? Time will tell.

This being
the last column of 2013, I want to wish you a very happy and healthy new
year. If you have story ideas, questions about the whereabouts of a
radio personality, a station you want to know more about, or just want
to tell me about your love of radio, I’d like to hear from you. I’ll try
to include as many ideas and letters in the column throughout 2014.

Richard Wagoner is a San Pedro freelance writer covering radio in Southern California. Send him email at rwagoner@cox.net.